Early this morning just before 1:00 AM, our communications center received a call from a resident in the area of Clovis/Shepherd about 3 people checking the door handles of cars in their neighborhood. Officers responded and located 2 of the 3 suspects immediately. The third suspect was found hiding in the bushes minutes later with the help of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office helicopter, “Eagle One”.

The investigation determined that all 3 suspects drove from Merced in 2 stolen cars, dropping them off in the neighborhood where they were located. It is fairly common for someone to steal a car, then drop it off at another location just to find and steal another car. The suspects were identified as 18-year-old Octavia Scott, 19-year-old Anthony Granados, and 18-year-old Taylon Gora, all of Merced. All 3 suspects were booked into Fresno County Jail for grand theft auto, possession of stolen property, and conspiracy, which are all felonies. Both stolen vehicles were recovered.

We would like to thank the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office Eagle One helicopter crew for their assistance, and to the Clovis resident who called us immediately!

Due to California law, we are unable to post booking photos of the suspects arrested.